Jazz Ukulele - Main

Yes! You can play jazz on a ukulele!!!

Just What is Jazz?

Personally for me – jazz is improvisational music. Whether it's a simple re-phrasing of a standard melody or full blown improvisation. It's all about spontaneously creating music - spontaneous composition or at times spontaneously combustion.

Most people will say they don't like "Jazz," based on some previous pre-conception of what it is or bad performances from what they perceived as Jazz. However, play them some excellent music without telling them it's jazz and they'll most likely like it.

I fell in love with the improvisational aspect of that style of music and creating my versions of classic songs. In my mid twenties I hooked up with Paul Byrne a teacher in Phoenixville, PA USA who was teaching out of Jaworski's Music Centre. Then I really started to come into my own when I started studying with the great Chuck Anderson. I studied with Chuck for over 30 years and is still a valuable resource and mentor. Both Paul and especially Chuck studied with and have a lineage to the great Dennis Sandole.

Here's WikipediA's take on it.

Jazz is a music genre that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th century American popular music. Its West African pedigree is evident in its use of blue notes, improvisation, polyrhythms, syncopation, and the swung note. (fromWidipediA)

Hooked on Jazz!

I got turned on and hooked on playing jazz guitar in my early 20's by Paul Byrne and have been playing and a serious student of all things jazz guitar and music ever since.

Like a lot of guitar players my age, it all started around 1963-64. It was rock 'n' roll and the British Invasion that got me into wanting to play guitar. Discovering jazz in my 20's opened up the possibilities of the guitar. Re-discovering the ukulele several years in 2003, I naturally started exploring developing my jazz repertoire on the ukulele.

There's a lot of mystic surrounding learning playing Jazz on guitar or ukulele. But it's not as hard as you might think. Is it musically more complicated than rock or country - definitely more is required, but well worth the effort, just think of it as an artist with a bigger box of crayons, more color possibilities.

In addition to studying jazz guitar for the past 40 plus years. I've been a private music teacher for a majority of those years with up 70 students a week at times of all ages, levels, styles and instruments.

My background and training as a graphic artist and some computer and web programming chops. It allows me to present my material in a way that is concise, well researched, tested and in an organized and professional manner. All that with making it easy and accessible to apply to ukulele.

Here are a few of the elements that would be typically covered in a well rounded musical education
— Actually ANY Music Study Program

Just like jazz guitar, jazz on ukulele is an advanced form of ukulele and is not usually your first introduction to the ukulele. After the fundamentals of the ukulele are covered, here is what would be typically involved in learning jazz ukulele.

Organization is essential when learning to play any music on ukulele or any instrument. This is where a real jazz guitar or jazz ukulele teacher would really help. Here is my organization of the subjects and material that you would cover in a balanced jazz ukulele program of study. For all my students'' lessons are customized to their particular experience and goals.

Mechanical Technique

Technique is the physical control and coordination needed to play an instrument or sing. It involves position, an efficiency of motion and effort, as well as exercises to develop specific skills. For ukulele, it's developing your right and left hand. You'll never be any better than your ability to execute what you want to play. Developing the motor skills are where all the work comes in.

Ear Training

Chords & Chord Progressions

Chord construction, core, and derived chords.

A “Jazz” chord is simply a 4-part chord used in a wide variety of contemporary music. Widely associated with “jazz” players, anyone can use these cool chords. Playing background chords in support of a singer or soloist.

Common chord progressions.

Theory

The principles of Music - This is how it all works.

Rhythm

Rhythm is intertwined into all aspects of music and a subject all to it own. Rhythm is an inseparable part of strumming patterns.

Melody

This is one of the most recognizable parts of a song or composition. The melody along with the lyrics part of a song that you can copyright.

Reading Music

No – NOT Reading TAB – actually learning to read music. It's the lingua franca of musicians around the world and opens you up to a world of music beyond the ukulele. And, anything that alienates ukulele players from the other musicians can't be a good thing. It's akin to wanting to be a painter and buying a paint by numbers set. No granted some of the results will look and sound good - but you sound like everyone else that paints by numbers.

Repertoire and Songs

Developing a jazz ukulele repertoire.

Styles

Swing, Bossa, Latin, Jazz Waltz, Ballads and more… Studying rhythm, which is at the core of all styles is the way to go.

Stability of Tempo

Basically playing in time.

Harmonic, Melodic and Rhythmic Analysis

Harmonic Analysis is the process used to determine the harmonic function of chords within a chord progression or song. A chord progression is a sequence of chords, each chord has a root and is a particular type. The relationship of a chord’s to a scale determines its function within that scale’s tonality.

Musical Devices

Improvisation

The essential scales for ALL jazz musicians. - Traditional, Contemporary and Modal scales that are all part of a jazz musicians bag of tricks.

As you can see, it's quite a list. Don't despair! Like the proverbial journey of 1000 miles, it can get done one step at a time. The biggest problem is organizing those steps. Of all ukulele and guitar based forms, jazz is the most difficult to go it alone. That's one reason there are more Jazz majors in college now than at any other time in history.

My personal development and belief support the private teacher model. I was lucky enough in my jazz development to study jazz guitar and all things music with Chuck Anderson. I continue to use Chuck as a valuable resource regarding all aspects of my music career.

There is a great need for customized, dedicated personal teaching. The old European model of master and apprentice works well in this field. It, of course, needs some modern updating. But by and large, this model is more useful than the collegiate model. I would not recommend one try and go it alone when learning the more advanced topics that are part of the jazz repertoire .

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a href="https://learningukulele.com/lessons">lessons section and get started...

Just browsing over both books, they look fantastic! I'm a guitarist and uke player for over 25 years and was thinking about writing a ukulele book but you've already written what I think are the best, most comprehensive and thorough books I've ever seen for the instrument. I just might end up buying every book you've written and I'll be giving my highest recommendation for your books to my friends and students. Thank you so much for taking the time to write such great books! — Peter Rhee

Aloha, Curt, All I can say is WOW! What you have accomplished is simply incredible! All the best — Glen Hirabayashi, The Aloha Boys

Folks, if you haven't stopped by Curt's site, do so right now! ..And get his books, they are fantastic. This guy knows his stuff and is able to pass it along too. — Alan Johnson Proprietor, The 4th Peg

I can highly recommend Curt's Uke books — I have four of them and they are excellent. — fatveg — Portland

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This sit has ben profesionaly red. awl tpyos aree free and no aditonal chrge • I'm blaming it on “jazz” fingers
Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.